Magnet-controlled third-rail system.



PATENTED DEC. 12, 1905.

H. J. PALMER. MAGNET CONTROLLED THIRD RAIL SYSTEM.

APPLIOATION FILED 00T. 3, 1904.

2 SHEETS-SHEET lA W/TVESSES'.' @am No. 807,199. PATBNTBD DEG. 12', 1905. H. J. PALMER.

MAGNET GONTROLLBD THIRD RAIL SYSTEM.

APPLIOATION FILED oo'r. a, 1904.

2 smms-snnfr z ATTORNEYS UNITED STATES PATENT orrion.'

HENRY J. PALMER, OFl PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TO MAX BLEIMAN, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.`

MAGNET-CONTROLLED 4THIRD-RAIL SYSTEM.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 12, 1905.

Application iiledvOctober 3, 1904. Serial No. 226,995.

To all whom, it may concern.-

Be it known that I, HENRY J. PALMER, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of .Philadelphia, in the county of Philadelphia and State of Pennsylvania, have inventedA a new and Improved Magnet-Controlled Third- Rail System, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

My invention relates to third-rail systems,

my more particularobject being to produce a system in which improved mechanism controllable automatically by a magnet is used for the purpose of temporarily completing the circuit.

My invention further relates to certain improvements in mechanism to be mounted upon a movable Vehicle for the purpose of governing the contact mechanism for supplying current to the motors of the vehicle.

My invention also relates to certain improved parts and combinations thereof, as will be hereinafter described, and defined in the appended claims.

Reference is to be had to the aecompan ying drawings, forming a part of this specication, in which similar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the figures.

Figure 1 is a fragmentary side elevation, partly in section, showing my system as applied to a street-car. Fig. 2 is a vertical cross-section upon the line 2 2 of Fig. 1 looking in the direction of the arrow. Fig. 3 is a diagram of the wiring and other electrical connections, and Fig. 4 is a fragmentary plan showing the yoke 19 as removed from the other mechanism and partly broken away.

A metallic rail 4 is provided with a troughshaped portion 5, containing a metallic trough 6, in which is mounted a boX 7 of insulating material, carrying a gutter 8, in which loosely rests the cable 9, which is made of iron, steel, or other ferruginous material. Mounted within the trough-shaped portion 5 are metallic panels 10, provided with insulating-panels 11, and mounted within these panels of insulatingmaterial and supported thereby are a number of metallic contact-plates 12, separated from each other by insulating-blocks 12, as indicated in Figs. 1 and 3. Each panel 1() is provided with beveled edges 10L 10b.

. The trough-shaped portion 5 is provided with iianges 13, and mounted upon these flanges are metallic plates 14, provided with hooked edges 14 and with downwardly-projecting vupon the hand-lever 26.

'ably mounted upon a hanger 27, which is flanges 14, these flanges being connected with the trough-shaped portion 5 by means of bolts 15. For this purpose the downwardly-projecting flanges 14b are beveled, so as to t the beveled edges 101 of the metallic panels 10. The contact shoes or brushes are shown at 16, and mounted upon these shoes or brushes are blocks 17 of insulating material, disposed as indicated in Fig. 2 in order to prevent the possibility of actual contact between the shoes and the metallic parts upon each side thereof. These shoes 16 are mounted upon movable cores 18, connected rigidly thereto by a single metallic yoke 19, carrying plates 198L of insulating material. The body of the vehicle is shown at 2O and supports a yoke 21, depending therebelow. This yoke 21 is provided with sleeves 22 of insulating material, and

.engaging these sleeves are springs 23, which press downward upon the yoke 19, tending normally to force theshoes 16 into gentle engagement with the contact-plates 1 2. Toggles 24 are journaled, respectively, upon the plate 19at and yoke 21, these toggles being pivoted upon a pitman 25, which is journaled This lever is movconnected with the vehicle 20. A toothed sector 28 is mounted upon the vehicle 20 and is engaged by a pavvl 29, controllable by a handle 30. Thehand-lever 26 is controllable by means of a handle 31. A pair of solenoids 32 are supported by the yoke 21.

^ Mounted upon the yoke 19 is a binding-post 33, and a wire 34 connects this binding-post with the solenoids 32. -From these solenoids a wire 36 leads upward to a switch 36 and thence to a binding-post 37, which is in electrical communication with vthe ground. A wire 35 leads from the binding-post 33 to the controller 20a. From this controller a wire 38 leads `to the motor 39 for propelling the vehicle, and from the motor a wire 40 leads to the binding-post 41, mounted upon the vehicle 2O and in communication with the ground through the medium of the wheels 42. The cable 9 normally lies loosely within the gutter 8 and is charged from the power-house in the usual manner. This cable is attracted by the iron contact-plates 12, which are polarized by means of the shoes 16. These shoes and the core 18 are made of steel and are permanently magnetized;`but their magnetism is increased by virtue of the solenoids 32.

The several contact-plates acting in succession keep that part of the cable immediately below the shoes 16 in contact with the plates or plate intervening.

The circuit through the solenoids 32 is controllable at will by means of the switch 36EL and is independent of the controller.

The core 18 and shoes 16 are Ymovable up and down by means of the hand-lever 26, as will be understood from Fig. 1. rJhe magnetism of the cores 18 is suiiicient to draw the cable into contact with the contact-plates 12 when the vehicle is still or is moving with comparative slowness; but in order to insure that the cable will move with suicient alacrity into contact with the plates 12 while the vehicle is moving at a rapid speed it is desirable that the solenoids 32 shall be called into requisition.

The circuit through the solenoids 32 is as follows: cable 9, metallic contact-plate 12, shoes 16, core 18, yoke 19, binding-post 33, wire 34, solenoids 32, wire 36, switch 36, binding-post 37 to ground.

The main circuit through the motor of the vehicle is as follows: cable 9, shoes 16, core 18, yoke 19, binding-post 33, wire 35, controller 20, wire 38, motor 39, wire 4.0, binding-post 41 to ground.

I do not limit myself to the particular arrangement of the circuits above described. Neither do I limit myself to the use of solenoids, for the reason that any other magnetic member or members may be employed. Neither do I limit myself to the particular arrangement for accommodating the cable, nor to the shape of any or all of the several metallic and insulating parts shown.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent- 1. The combination of a cable, magnetic mechanism for attracting the same, a contact member to be engaged by said cable when lifted by said magnetic mechanism, a support mounted upon a vehicle for sustaining said magnetic mechanism, toggles connected with said magnetic mechanism and with said support for the purpose of raising and lowering said magnetic mechanism relatively to said support, a hand-lever connected with said toggles for controlling the same, and means controllable at will for holding said hand-lever in predetermined positions for the purpose of adjusting the height of said magnetic mechanism relatively to said vehicle.

2. The combination of a movable vehicle, `solenoids mounted thereon and Xed relatively thereto, movable cores associated with said solenoids and adapted to be energized thereby, toggles connected with said cores for moving the same relatively to said vehicle, a hand-lever connected with said toggles for actuating the same, contact-shoes mounted upon said cores, contact members disposed along the track, and a conducting cable of magnetic material extending along the track and adapted to be drawn in engagement with said contact members when said cable is attracted by said cores.

3. The combination of a cond ucting-cable of magnetic material, magnetic cores carried by a movable vehicle for attracting said cable, contact members disposed along the railwaytrack and adapted to be engaged by said cable when the latter is attracted by said magnetic cores, a yoke connected with said magnetic cores, solenoids encircling said cores for the purpose of energizing the same, and manuallyoperated toggle mechanism for moving said cores toward and from said contact members.

4. The combination of a movable conductor adapted to be attracted, a contact member disposed adjacent thereto, a pair of insulating members engaging opposite edges of said contact member for the purpose of supporting the same, magnetic mechanism mounted upon a movable vehicle and adapted to pass over said contact member, means for energizing said magnetic mechanism, a conductor adapted to temporarily engage said contact member for the purpose of completing a circuit through said movable conductor and said contact member, a metallic gutter for supporting said conductor, a member of insulating material for supporting said gutter, a metallic trough for supporting said member of insulating material, and means for supporting said metallic trough.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

HENRY J. PALMER.

Witnesses:

I/VALTON HARRISON, EVERARD BoL'roN MARSHALL.

IOO 

